A Review: DIVINITY III: ESCAPE FROM GULAG 396 #1

The Fellowship was fortunate enough to obtain a copy of DIVINITY III: ESCAPE FROM GULAG 396 #1 from Valiant Entertainment. Eliot Rahal writes, Francis Portela draws, Andrew Dalhouse colors, and Dave Sharpe letters.

A young man of God is discovered, and is sentenced to hard labor for his beliefs. Not unusual in the Stalinverse. But this one is a little different, and the warden decides to play a game with him. Get the big guy in solitary to ask out of solitary, and you can have one wish. The young man accepts (no choice, really) and talks to the big guy. It works, and the young man’s wish is the big guy’s release, reminding him how important friendship really is.

No surprises here – this is the Stalinverse version of Archer and Armstrong. Armstrong is pretty depressed, and Archer helps him out of it. It’s a nice introduction, given the bleakness of this setting. A lot of talking, but I’m sure we’ll get into the action (and probably even some comedy) later on. It’s a well-written beginning, and the art really shines in terms of expressing emotion, especially if you follow the eyes.

This is definitely not a setting you’d expect to see these characters navigating, but the friendship comes across despite the challenges. One can’t go wrong with Archer and Armstrong.

DIVINITY III: ESCAPE FROM GULAG 396 #1 is available now from your local comic shop, or online at valiantentertainment.com.

~Mike ( @MikeyGeek )